Development plan to upgrade settlements

People living in settlements will soon have titles to their land and homes, thanks to the Minister for Lands and Physical Planning Justin Tkatchenko. Tkatchenko and National Capital District Governor Powes Parkop, who had campaigned heavily on the development of changing settlements into suburbs, have already started working on implementing the concept with the setting up of the National Capital District lands unit for securing public places. “Changing settlements into suburb areas is not very hard,” Tkatchenko said. “We just have to put in the proper infrastructure first, like roads, water and power. “We will also work with the housing corporation to ensure that all houses meet the requirements so that we change the settlements into suburbs. Then we survey the land, value it and award land tittles to secure your land for the future.” Tkatchenko said that the people who lived in settlements have been there for a very long time, some of them were second and third generations of the people who first settled there and he had no intention of moving them. He also said that a joint committee will be finalised next week which would include the governor, the Lands Department, the customary landowners, National Capital District Commission physical planning and the Department of Housing and Urbanisation. “I can tell you all that urban development of changing settlements into suburbs will start in two weeks’ time,” Tkatchenko said.